“Who Cares About Kelsey?” Screening

A free, public screening of nationally acclaimed documentary “Who Cares About Kelsey?” will be held at 1:30 p.m., on Wednesday, April 17, in the Albright Auditorium. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Dan Habib and film subject, Kelsey Carroll.

Habib is the Emmy-nominated director/producer of “Including Samuel,” broadcast nationally on public television. “Who Cares About Kelsey?” has been screened at film festivals, national conferences, and school districts around the country.

The film features Carroll, a high school student with one goal – to graduate from high school – and plenty of reasons why she shouldn’t. She attends a school with one of the highest dropout rates in New Hampshire and has dealt with homelessness, sexual abuse and ADHD. As a freshman, she didn’t earn a single academic credit, but she did get suspended for dealing drugs. “Who Cares About Kelsey?” is the story of Carroll’s transformation from a defiant and disruptive “problem student” to a motivated and self-confident young woman. Along the way, critical figures in her personal and educational life shape her coming of age and play important roles in an education revolution that’s about empowering – not overpowering – youth with emotional and behavioral challenges.

Nationally, more than two million young people have emotional/ behavioral disabilities. Youth with these disabilities have the worst graduation rate of all students with disabilities. Only 40 percent of students with emotional and behavioral disabilities in the United States graduate from high school, compared to the national average of 76 percent of all students.

Students, teachers, professionals, parents, and community members are encouraged to attend and hear how our communities can improve outcomes for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities.

This screening is one of the many key events during The ARTS Experience, a festival celebrating inclusion and the arts. The festival, April 8 – 19, is co-sponsored by Hobart and William Smith Colleges and the Collaborative of the Finger Lakes, Inc. a network of 12 NYSARC, Inc. chapters providing supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Visit www.hws.edu/festival for more information.